Really, I think this is the only “real” italian restaurant in Hilo.  Chef Lando Landi, a native Italian, puts so much love and passion into his food that it creates a wonderfully warm family style atmosphere in his little restaurant.  Cafe Pescatore has nothing on this place. 

The food here is so fresh, homestyle, affordable and unpretentious.  Perfect for a fun romantic date or even a get-together with friends over wine (BYOB!).  There is even a great wine store next door (Grapes) if you need to get a bottle (closes at 6pm).

Fresh Caprese Salad

Super juicy tomatoes with fresh mozzarella and fresh salad. Good stuff.

Penne with Pesto.

Best pesto I’ve ever tasted. Fresh, bright, rich and full of flavor.  Pasta was cooked perfectly al-dente.  I highly recommend trying any of their dishes with the wonderful pesto!

4-cheese Ravioli w/spinach.

This practically melts in your mouth and is soooo delicious.  I could eat 2 (or 4) plates of this!  Nothing beats freshly made ravioli — you gotta try it.

Cappellini w/meatballs

Refreshingly light and bright sauce with freshly made meatballs. I love how they keep their pastas fresh, light and flavorful.

Pasta with clam sauce  (Pasta al vongole)

Very nice  with a kick of spiciness.  I appreciate that the chef was not afraid to make this spicy!  

I can’t forget to mention the bread!  The chef actually brought out fresh loafs and cutted them up for the guests.  The bread was so wonderfully yummy straight out of the oven.  We couldn’t have enough!

Creme Brule

Soooooo so good!  Highly recommended!

Tiramisu

Light, refreshing and swimming in rum — not too rich like many other Tiramisu’s.

The chef also serves a free homemade “digestive”, sorta like a limoncello, but with his own flavors.  He makes different flavors all the time.  Tonight it was fresh ginger.  Don’t turn down the opportunity to try it! It’s a perfect ending to the meal.

If you haven’t yet tried this place, you are missing out.  Definitely one of Hilo’s gems.  A meal for two is well under $40 yet tastes like a $100 meal.

Cafe Concerto
808 Kilauea Ave., Hilo, HI 96720
Phone: (808) 934-0312 (call to check their hours/days open)

They offer different places to sit. You can choose outside or inside on tables, the sushi bar, or on the floor in the tatami room. We wanted to sit in the tatami room… it’s really cozy.

We started with some nice genmaicha (green tea, $5 a pot).

The kitchen brought out little samples of roasted eggplant with tomato and creme fraiche on a toasted baguette which were delicious. I love it when the kitchen surprises you with little goodies!

We then ordered some sushi! Starting with some local snapper ($8) and Maguro ($6).

Hamachi ($7) and more Maguro (since it was so good!).

Wowzers this is some ono sushi! Super fresh and was prepared perfectly. The waitress said that the fish just came in that afternoon. Too bad they never had some of the other sushi we wanted (chutoro & saba) — she said that they only will serve the fish if it’s absolutely fresh. It was a great to know how important freshness is to them.

At this point, we ordered a couple Kirin beers on tap.

We had to try one of their rolls. This is the Four Tower roll ($12 or $14, i forget).

You know, I don’t remember exactly what was in here… I think it was some kind of combination of tuna, salmon, yellowtail, shrimp, crab, avocado, fried up tempura style… for sure I got that wrong… anyone who knows please post a comment. It was scrumptiously good. My only problem with rolls is that it’s hard to appreciate all the ingredients in the roll… especially with top quality ingredients like this, but as a whole, it was yummy. The sauce was nice and spicy and it came with a wakame salad.

We were tempted to just eat more sushi, but had to try one of their entrees (for research reasons, I told Bev). It was really hard to choose. We decided on their Wok Lacquered Prawns with Caramelized Onions ($17).

Hoooo brah. Dis was seriously broke da mout’! For real, these prawns were super juicy and cooked perfectly. The caramalized onions rocked. The sauce was so tasty — very very rich and not too sweet. It complimented the prawns perfectly. Very generous portion too.

And for desert, a Kona coffee chocolate cake with tahitian vanilla cream and chocolate sauce ($8 I think?).

Now I’ve had a lot of chocolate cakes, but I gotta say this was one of the best I’ve ever had. What made this one special is how well the coffee complimented the chocolate. It had a very deep dark roasted nutty flavor. The cake as a whole also was not too sweet, which allowed the chocolate and coffee shine. Add to it the Tahitian vailla and the rich chocolate sauce, and it was perfect! The Tahitian vanilla cream had a really nice flowery sweet flavor. Could it get any better???

Thank you Fujimamas for the wonderful time. It was very memorable! We will be back.

Fujimamas Restaurant & Sushi Bar
75-5719 Alii Drive (right next to Panchos & Lefty down a small alley off of Ali’i Drive)
Kailua Kona, HI 96740
(808) 327-2125
www.fujimamas.com

Taking advantage of the long weekend, Bev and I went camping at Punalu’u Black Sand Beach on the south side of the Island. I hardly drive down there, so almost every time I do, I gotta stop by the Hirano store in Glenwood, which is after passing Mountain View and before Volcano. They have some mean grinds!

The people that work here are so friendly. It seems that the more remote an area is, the friendlier they get. Inside the store is all your regular stuff… drinks, chips, snacks, etc. And in one corner they have a menu offering plate lunches, sandwiches, hot dogs, and best of all their offerings… chili bowls!

Hirano Store Chili Bowl with Rice ($3.00), loaded with goodness! It’s a unique kind of style… a bit soupy, but still very hearty. The flavor and consistency sort of remind me of a Portuguese Bean Soup, but spicier with chili flavors.

It went wonderfully with their $.85 hot dog on a sweet bread bun.

Very satisfying… ready to continue driving!

• Some photos of our camping trip (flickr)

Hirano Store
Glenwood
808-968-6522

What a deal! (not my cow clip holder)

It smelled so good inside. There were some guys in the back slicing pizzas while a girl was tossing and spinning pizza dough. Another cool thing about this place is that they have a bunch of board games you can pick up and play with at the table.

These two guys were playing Connect Four as they ate their pizza and enjoyed some beer (I assume this place is BYOB since they don’t offer any liquor).

We ordered 2 pepperoni slices ($0.96 + $0.55topping x 2 = $3.02), an additional “New Yorker” slice ($3.45), and a side salad ($2.95) for take out.

This is New York style pizza with beautiful thin bubbly crusty crust. Unfortunately, I’ve never tried a “real” New York style pizza, but if the pizza here is any representation of what’s in NY, I already know I love it! The crust is what makes a pizza, and it was fantastic with great texture and bite, especially on the outer ends. In the middle, the crust is very thin, which really brings out the sauce (really rich and tasty), generous layering of cheese and pepperoni. The salad was also very good and fresh. The ranch dressing also tasted really nice… homemade maybe? It tasted really creamy… almost yogurty.

I gotta say that this was some of the best pizza I’ve ever had… very likely the best on the Big Island! My other favorite is Cafe Pesto, which is excellent pizza… but it’s just not the same. Big Island Pizza is also good, with a variety of gourmet toppings, but the crust just doesn’t have the same kind of crusty texture as Pizza Hawaii.

I’m so glad Hilo has this place.

Pizza Hawaii
Puainako Town Centre
Hilo, HI 96720
Phone: (808) 959-9932
Fax: (808) 959-9566

So what would you do if you were driving down this road at high noon? I’m sure you know the answer!

Mr. Itsu himself was there making ice shave for everybody. Bev and I ordered a Coconut Deluxe Bowl. Deluxe means that the ice shave comes with vanilla ice cream and azuki beans (made as a sweet red yummy paste). I’ll let the photos explain…

A nice scoop of vanilla ice cream is put on the bottom of the bowl/cup.

Next, the azuki bean paste is layered over.

Then shaved ice is put on top and formed into a nice big ball.

Pour some a generous amount of coconut syrup, and you get the bestest ice shave on the Island!

It was perfect and so refreshing. The shaved ice was really fluffy and the syrup was really tasty, and the azuki bean paste adds a nice tangy texture. Bev really liked the ice cream too.

Itsu’s is also famous for their $0.95 hot dogs, and now I know why. They are so good.

You can choose what to put on the hot dog. Get “da yellow sauce” (they’ll know what you mean) — it seems to be a combination of mayo, mustard, and maybe relish. The bun was served very soft and moist. The hot dog is the red kine (redondos?) — really juicy. It all just melts in da mouth and everything tasted so good together. Especially with an ice shave in the other hand. Highly recommended.

Other Posts on Itsu’s:

• Itsu’s Kim Chi Burger and Loco Moco
• Itsu’s Plate Lunch

Itsu’s Fishing Supplies Inc
810 Piilani St Hilo
(808) 935-8082

This is part two of a 5-part post from my recent visit to Oahu in July featuring the following places: Curry House, Angelo Pietro, Kaka`ako Kitchen, Elena’s, Yotteko-ya, and Popeye’s.

I’ve passed by this place many times whenever I visit Oahu since all the stores/movie theaters are nearby. It always looked appealing to try this place… a local plate lunch place sitting on high priced real estate? The food gotta be good there, I thought. I’ve also heard some good things about this place. I was able to try this place out for a late breakfast/early lunch this past July.

There was a good amount of people considering it was before 11am, but we found that we just missed breakfast. We were sad because we wanted to try the loco moco, and they consider the loco moco a breakfast food(!), so they wouldn’t serve us a loco moco.

C’mon now, what kind of place only serves loco mocos for breakfast? Who says a loco moco is just breakfast food anyway? They had hamburger steak — how much harder would it be to make a loco moco? Depriving a Hilo boy of his loco moco is a very bad idea!

Other than the loco moco inconvenience, the place was really nice (I only have food pics, sorry). Everything looked really clean and there was a nice open sunny vibe about the place. The people were actually nice besides the loco moco thing. If you are eating in, you place your order at the counter, then they give you a number. When your food is ready, they bring the food to your table, which is nice.

After a lot of thinking, I ordered the Beef Stew ($6.25) with brown rice and mac salad.

What a perfect breakfast, right? The beef stew was good and satisfying, but not really good. It tasted like regular homemade type of beef stew, but without the love… not as good as da one gramma or aunty [insert name here] makes. There was too much vegetables for my taste and I prefer more bigger fatty pieces of beef. The mac salad was not bad. Gotta have tabasco, right?

Bev ordered the hamburger steak ($6.25), the closest thing to a loco moco.

Bev thought the hamburger steak was just ok. It was good at first, but it got tiring to eat after a while. The consistency of the burger was very mushy like a soft meatloaf, but without the yummy meatloaf flavor. The outside of the burger was also burnt. I like slightly charred burgers, but there is a difference between a nicely charred burger and a burger burned by frying it too much.

The gravy was good, though, and the onions on top made for a nice texture combination. Overall, it was acceptable, but like the beef stew, it wasn’t that great.

We might’ve just ordered the wrong things. I’m willing to give this place another chance, but I’m not too excited to come back here.

Kaka`ako Kitchen
Ward Centre
1200 Ala Moana Boulevard
Telephone: 808-596-7488

Yes, a hamburger loco moco for $1.90. Freddy’s has got to have the best loco moco value in Hilo!

Freddy’s has a nice eating area with big windows providing lots of natural light.

The service was very friendly and quick.

“One hamburga loco. Sunny side up. Thanks. ”

Isn’t it a beauty?

Slide your plate a little to the right and the loco moco condiments are right there.

You gotta put on da shoyu, ketchup, and tabasco, or you’re not having the full loco moco experience!

Overall, this loco moco is very satisfying and tastes very good, but for the picky details…

• Burger: Good size and taste was good. Based on the texture I could tell this was a premade burger, but it still tasted good in the overall picture.
• Gravy: Standard brown gravy. Good amount given. Flavor was nothing special, but it was just right.
• Egg: Perfectly cooked nice quality egg.
• Rice: Good rice! Cooked just right.

Freddy’s loco moco is a very decent loco moco. They cut some corners to make it cheaper (like the burger), but the beauty of a loco moco is that it is a cheap, fast, and satisfying meal. So, this is a perfect representation of the essence of a true loco moco.

For those who want to dine in, Freddy’s has a restaurant area on the side.

Freddy’s is also famous for their sandwiches, which are very big, fresh and delicious. Their plate lunches are also very good. I hope to feature more food from here in the future.

Freddy’s Restaurant/Drive-In
454 Manono St
Hilo, Hawaii
(808) 935-1108